Did Mayweather vs Alvarez save boxing? Not a chance. Which was the same opportunity Alvarez had to win.

Who’s the one? We kind of already know that don’t we?

As retro gamers, many of us probably view boxing like this…..or perhaps even this……not so much like this though. But the glory days of the Sweet Science are long gone, and the sport is a pale shadow of what it once was, when legends such as Joe Louis, Mohammed Ali, George Foreman, Evander Holyfield and even “Iron” Mike Tyson ruled their respective decades.

The bout on Saturday night, between two undefeated men for Mayweather’s undisputed title, was supposed to be one for the ages which, dare I say, would be the savior of boxing. It was neither. But that’s not to say that it was un-enjoyable. No, if you watched the fight, you would have actually marveled at it. Not because it was in any way a close match, but because you got to see just how dominant Maywheather is, in case you hadn’t noticed already.

There are plenty of people who hate the “Money” man. They believe him to be too arrogant and brash, while others, such as myself, see him as what the sport needs. Mayweather plays the villain. He’s the heel wrestler. He runs his mouth and acts with swagger to draw attention to himself and his fights. I don’t even think he believes what he says most of the time. He’s simply trying to get a ruse out of you. And if he’s gotten one person to take interest in buying his pay per views, he’s done his job. But unlike other boxers or should I say promoters (I’m looking at you Don King), Mayweather has rearely backed away from a fight. This is most evident in his latest bout against Alvarez. 13 years younger than himself, undefeated and the boxer many say is the future of the sport, Floyd accepted Canelo’s challenge even though he had already fought once this year.

But while Alverez might be the future, there is no question that Mayweather is still the present. In fact, given how easily he defeated Alverez, Father Time might be the only opponent that can send the champ down for the count. Despite the age gap, Mayweather was faster and in much better shape than Alverez. His masterful combinations to the face and body, combined with his lightening quick elusiveness, kept Canelo bruised and swinging at air for most of the bout. When he did manage to lay a glove on the champ, the blows were mostly deflected shots off of Mayweather’s elbows and shoulders. There were a few times in which Alverez tried to take advantage of his strength by wrestling a little with Floyd, but these attempts were quickly broken up by the official or by Alverez himself, as he is a classy pro fighter who seemed interested in beating the champ legally and not turning the bout into a circus.

So we are clear: Above = Circus

So why didn’t this fight live up to the hype. Simple, Mayweather is just too good for the sport. He has beaten everyone in his weight class and has yet to even been knocked to the canvass. So why the lack of attention from the casual fan mostly outside the boxing world? In my opinion, there are two reasons. First, Mayweather is not a heavyweight. Let’s face it, when the average sport fan thinks about boxing they hear Michal Buffer yell, “For the Heavyweight Championship of the World!” Mike Tyson captured my imagination as a kid because he was dominant at what seemed to be the “major leagues” of boxing, the heavyweight division. But if you don’t subscribe to that theory, here’s one more, there is no drama. Oh there is still corruption and stupidity (see my zero of the week), but vey little drama. I mentioned before that Mayweather does a superb job at creating heat for himself and attention for his matches, but lost in that is the fact that he has too. He is so good that his opponents can hardly lay a glove on him. And, when you know the outcome beforehand, it leaves little room for mystery and intrigue. Money may just be too good for his own good. Or really not his own good, as his pocketbook is just fine. More so, too good to make boxing credible again.

All of that is unfortunate for the sport, but it’s hardly Mayweather’s fault. He simply can’t find anybody on this planet to spar with. Maybe he’ll have to go the Mike Tyson’s Punch Out 2Power Punch II rout and head into space. Hopefully most gamers don’t think about that game either when they think about boxing.

Peyton Manning is amazing! Not only did he tie an NFL record with 7 passing TD’s in a route of the defending Super Bowl champs, he got me 72 points in my fantasy league. Then he followed that up with another great performance against his brother in New York. My love for him overshadows my hate for John Elway. Go Broncos!

Zero of the Week

Judge C.J. Ross for her tie score of the Mayweather vs Canelo fight. WTF were you watching? Apparently, this isn’t the first time that she has been accused of incompetent scoring. Don’t be too harsh though. Judging by that profile pick, it’s probably been a long time since somebody tried to score with her. Wait, was that too harsh?

He only got me 30 points this week……bum.

Highlight of the Week

I’ve always liked Jim Furyk. He seems like a decent guy, and he’s always around the top ten, just rarely #1. In the first round of the BMW Championship, Furyk tied a PGA record by scoring a 59 in a sanctioned event. A score that had been shot only 5 times previously. Here is his clinching putt.

Lowlight of the Week

Last Saturday, #20 Wisconsin had their hands full in the desert against Arizona State. With just a few seconds left and the Badgers trailing by 2, QB Joel Stave should have just taken a knee or spiked the ball, in order to set up the potential game winning field goal. Instead, he set the ball on the ground which allowed the A.S.U. players to pounce on it as if it was a fumble. It was ruled a dead ball, but the officials then didn’t have enough time to re-spot the ball before the clock struck zero. Just bizarre. How Bizzare? About as bizarre as how anybody could stand that stupid bizarre song. Seriously, that song sucked.

Wait, he’s actually a Muppet? I like him even more now!

Sports are Invading Your: Real Life Athletes Posing in a Graphic From a Video Game

Cliff Ronning was an NHL player from 1985-2004. He’s mostly known for the time he spent with his hometown Canucks between 1990-1995. If you were a fan of EA’s NHL franchise, you might remember Ronning as being rather good in the early 90’s versions of the game. And when I say rather good, I mean on par with some of the BEST centers in hockey at the time. That’s because Ronning actually went to school with the guy who eventually founded EA Sports. Anyway, at a charity event this past week, Ronning found himself presented with a chair mat designed after the star logos in NHL ’93. It’s nothing that will rock your world, but how often does an actual person get to stand in a pixelated star created just for him in a video game from 20 years ago? That’s right, probably not often.

(Note from the author: Sports incite great passion and emotion in all of us, which is why they are so popular the wrld over. I encourage you to share your opinions in the comments section, on Twitter or Facebook, but please do it responsibly. I have no agenda with Bench Warming other than to share my love of sports and perhaps get a few people to grin from time to time. Thank you for stopping by and I hope you enjoy reading this column as much as I enjoy writing it.)

About TheAK21

TheAK21 is a fan of sports and video games. When not writing Bench Warming, he manages a golf course and is a varsity hockey coach. Where does he find the time? He also has an extremely beautiful, loving, supportive and patient wife. That helps.
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